Upgrading the A5 to reduce queues, support growth and prevent rural rat-runs is a “no-brainer”, MPs were told during a debate in the House of Commons.

Bosworth Conservative representative David Tredinnick used the phrase during an impassioned plea to prioritise improvement works.

A project to dual part of the notoriously congested trunk road between The Long Shoot junction and Dodwell’s island is in the offing but has been delayed until 2020/21 to allow for completion of the M6 smart motorway scheme.

Mr Tredinnick, and colleagues from neighbouring constituencies, were at pains to point out action on the A5, and not only on the A47 stretch, but the 30-mile section between Northampton and Stafford, were desperately needed now.

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Talk of turning the A5 into a two-lane expressway has been going on for years.

The Bosworth MP, who had secured the debate, outlined the strategic and historical importance of the A5-Watling Street and talked about current and future growth, of both housing development and employment expansion along the route through Warwickshire and Leicestershire.

He suggested while the encircling motorways, M1, M6 and M40 had for some time taken the pre-eminence from the A5, that was no longer the case and for the sake of the “resilience” of the Midlands road network it required attention and investment.

He said: “There are significant proposals for 60,000 new homes - a staggering amount - to be delivered along that corridor between Northampton and Stafford via Warwickshire and Leicestershire up to 2031.

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“In addition to housing growth, more than 500 hectares - more than 1,000 acres - of new employment land is planned that will contribute £1.5 billion gross value added to the economy and generate thousands of jobs over 20 years. That is a staggering investment.”

Mentioning the expected further extension of MIRA-Horriba Technology Park and Magna Park he also highlighted the peak-time congestion on The Long Shoot-Dodwells approach and consequent rat-run problems through surrounding villages.

He said £10 million could be spent on progressing the expressway project and added: “The standard of the A5 is shocking. It is mostly a single-lane road, with some dualling, and it regularly gets clogged up, as we all know. It will be impossible for the economic corridor to develop unless we act now. For the sake of resilience, a proper relief road for the motorway system is critical. The M1 and M6 are frequently closed because of traffic problems, bridge changes and all kinds of other problems.

“Our case is that the 30-mile stretch of the A5 should be upgraded to expressway standard, with priority given to the section between the M1 and the M42.”

Supporting the case were Mark Pawsey MP for Rugby, Alberto Costa MP for South Leicestershire, Craig Tracey MP for North Warwickshire and Nuneaton MP Marcus Jones.

It was Mr Jones who stated: “The Minister will know that an upgrade is planned for the short section of the A5 between The Long Shoot junction and the Dodwells island, where Nuneaton meets Hinckley.

“He will not need me to tell him that, given the challenges in that area, that upgrade is very much a short-term fix. It is important and it is required, but it will not deal with the fundamental issues.”

In response to the debate Jesse Norman, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport outlined the investment already made and proposed up to 2025 and said Highways England was taking careful note of the expressway bid.